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Syd Belton: The Boy who would not go to Sea, a fiction by George Manville Fenn |
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Chapter 43 |
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_ CHAPTER FORTY THREE. That was an anxious night; and after a sort of council of war at the hospital, in which the lieutenant, Roylance, and Strake took part with Syd, it was determined to have all ready for a retreat to the upper battery, and in case that should be taken, provisions and water were to be carried at daybreak up to the flagstaff, where a breastwork had already been made, plenty of broken masses of rock lying about to strengthen it, so that it would be a fresh position for the crew of the French frigate to attack. Syd was not at all surprised soon after daybreak--when the men were busy strengthening the empty battery, and others were building up the breastwork about the flagstaff and conveying up stores--to see the frigate coming back in full sail. There was plenty of excitement as the enemy was seen, and the men thoroughly realised the fact that the day's work before them would be no light task. "Seems to do one more good, though, Master Syd, sir," said Strake, as they were together alone. "Lying down, and bein' helped, and strapped and lashed 's all very well, but the sight o' one's nat'ral enemy 'pears to spurt you up like, and if it had only been a month longer, strikes me as we should have had the lufftenant helping of us again." "Have you seen Mr Terry about?" "No, sir; 'pears to have struck work like. Beg pardon, sir; but seeing as some on us may be gone to Davy Jones's locker 'fore night--not meaning you, o' course, but him--wouldn't it be handsome-like to go and make friends, and offer him your hand?" "I have done so more than once, Strake," said Syd, sternly, as he recalled the midshipman's action on the previous day, "but I can't do it again." "All right, sir, you knows best, o' course," said the boatswain, and he went off to his duty. The men worked hard, and by the time the frigate was close in there were the provisions and water in the upper battery, and a good supply in the works about the flagstaff. "You can do no more, Belton," said Mr Dallas. "I don't want to discourage you, but without help from sea we can only manage to hold out as long as possible, and give the enemy a tough job, for Old England's sake. Are the colours flying well?" "Yes, sir, splendidly." "That's right, then. Now, one word of advice; don't fire a shot at the frigate. With your two guns you can do her very little harm. Save your powder for the boats--round shot when they are coming to the shore, and grape as they are landing. Keep your men cool, and only let them fire when there is a good chance." _Bang_! The first shot from seaward followed by a crash, and the sound of stones falling as the frigate tried her range, and sent a heavy ball against the side of the gap. "Did not know she was so near," said the lieutenant. "But about you, sir? Shall I have you carried up to the flagstaff?" "Certainly not, my lad, never mind me. Go and do your duty. God save the King!" "God save the King!" echoed Syd, as he shook hands with the lieutenant, and hurried down to the little battery, to find that the frigate had drawn as close in as she could, but dared not come right in front of the gap, for her boat out sounding had discovered a reef right opposite. So after firing a few shots obliquely, all of which struck the north side of the gap, she made sail and went round to the other side of the reef, where disappointment again awaited her captain; for here again he could only fire obliquely, and send the stones rattling down on the south side of the gap. But he went on firing for about an hour before shifting his position once more, and then feeling his way in exactly opposite, but quite out of range. This was an unexpected change in favour of the defender, for though when they were freshly come it had been noticed that the sea ran high a quarter of a mile out from the lower end of the gap, the existence of a reef was not suspected, and it was some time before the defenders could thoroughly believe that the frigate could not get into position for sweeping the little gully from end to end. Again the frigate's position was changed, and fire opened. "We ought to shake hands on this," cried Roylance. "Fire away, Monsieur, knock down the rocks; it's all good for the powder and ball trade." "And doesn't frighten us a bit," added Syd, who for the moment forgot his important position, and its seriousness. "Haven't you seen Terry yet?" "No." "And I arn't seen my boy Pan, gen'lemen," said the boatswain--"My word, that was a good one," he interpolated, as a heavy shot struck the rock about twenty feet below the flagstaff, and a good ton of stones came rattling down--"strikes me as that boy's a-showing the white feather, gen'lemen, and it goes home to my 'art." "The boy's wounded, Strake; don't be too hard on him." "Not so bad but what he might ha' done powder-monkeying with one hand. But there's a deal o' vartue in rope's-ends arter all, and if I gets through to-day--" "You'll forgive him. What are they doing now?" Syd shouted to the man at the look-out, for the frigate was once more close in, south of the little pier, and had for half an hour been blazing away, but doing not the slightest harm. "Getting her boats out, sir." "Preparing to board, sir," cried Strake. "Round shot first as they come on?" "But the boats will be close in before we can get a shot at them, and there will not be time to reload," said Syd. "It is not as if they were going to row straight in, so that we could see them for some time first. It must be grape." "Grape it is, sir. Right," cried Strake, and the guns were charged accordingly. The men's orders were that they should wait till the enemy were well in by the little pier, then to fire, and as there would not be time to reload, they were to seize their cutlasses and pikes and be ready for the attacking party, who would undoubtedly swarm up to the foot of the rock wall, provided with spars, or something in the way of tackle, to enable them to scale the place, when the desperate fighting must begin. They were not long kept in waiting after the guns had been depressed, and their muzzles brought to bear well upon the only spot where the boats could land their men--the wreck moored close in limiting the space. And it turned out as Syd had imagined: the boats--three--came as close in as the submerged rocks would allow, and they were still out of sight when the defenders heard a shout, and first one and then another rowed into sight, making for the landing-place. Then came the third, as, thinking it a pity to have to give so terrible an order, Syd shouted "Fire!" with the result that the closely-packed charge from the first gun went right through one boat, leaving her crew struggling in the water; and the shot from the second gun completely tore off the bows of the third boat, but not until her crew was so near land that they were able to pilot the boat a few yards farther before she sank, her men literally tumbling one over the other into the deck-less hull of the water-logged wreck. The other boat got up to the pier in safety after her crew had held out oars and boat-hooks to their drowning comrades, and so all got to shore; the rush and beating of the water, and its churning up by the grape-shot having scattered the sharks for the moment. All this gave the occupants of the battery more time than they had anticipated, and this was utilised in reloading, which was almost completed, when there was a word of command, a shout; and armed with cutlass, pistol, and boarding-pike, the Frenchmen dashed up gallantly to the wall, some stopping back to fire at the defenders, who were, however, too well sheltered to be hurt. "Be ready with your arms, my lads," cried Syd, as he recalled stories of fights he had heard his father relate. "Ay, ay, sir." "Throw them back as fast as they get up." "Ay, ay, sir!" came again heartily; but the enemies' heads did not appear above the edge, and though the loud buzzing and shouting of orders came up, there was no adversary. It was not the men's fault, for they were at the bottom of a vast natural wall, which towered up from fifteen to twenty feet, and so smooth that there was not the slightest foothold to enable them to climb. The officer who had come up to it before with a flag of truce had in his excitement omitted to notice the difficulty, and consequently neither rope nor spar had been brought; and though the men clambered and shouted and made brave efforts to mount upon each other's shoulders, fortunately for them they were not able to get up far enough to be sent down with a cut on the head. The shouting and confusion lasted for some time, during which the defenders crouched in safety behind their breastwork, and waited. At last, just as the officers were deciding upon withdrawing their men, and asking themselves what their fate would be if the English began to play upon them during their retreat to the one boat which was left, there was another cheer, and a reinforcement from the frigate appeared. Strake sprang up to alter the level of the gun and take aim, but Syd stopped him. "This one hasn't come to attack," he said, as he saw that the boat was only half manned; the captain having seen the misfortunes that had befallen his other boats, and sent this one on to afford his men a means of retreat. For the attack was hopeless, and the officers gathered their men together, and despatched them in two parties to the little pier, the men moving with the greatest of regularity; and while a few kept up a running fire against the battery, the others embarked. "Now then, sir, give the word," whispered Strake, who was hoarse with excitement; "I can send a shot right through that there boat." "What for?" said Syd, coldly. "They are retreating, and we don't want to stop them and make them prisoners." "But they're our mortial enemies, sir," cried the boatswain, aghast. "Let them go," said Syd; and as the boats pushed off, with the frigate recommencing its useless fire to cover the retreat, the defenders of the little natural fort gave a hearty cheer. "We don't want a lot of bloodshed, Roy," said Syd, as they congratulated one another over the refreshment they were glad to take. "No; but I suppose we ought to have slaughtered a lot of them. We could." "My father used to tell my uncle, the admiral, that he was the greatest commander who could achieve a victory with the smallest loss of life." "Yes, sir," said a gruff voice behind him; "but I've know'd your father send some awful broadsides and rakings into the enemy's ships. Why, when we've gone aboard arter to take the furren captain's sword, I've seed their deck all slippery with blood." "And I'm glad those stones are not." "Very well, sir, if you're satisfied, I am; but I want to know what's gone o' my Pan. Hasn't hidden hisself in that water-cave, has he?" "I have not seen him," said Syd, and with Roylance he climbed up to the flagstaff to see the enemy's two crowded boats return to the frigate's side, after which the French captain made a slight change in his position; and as they watched they saw two fresh boats lowered and row away, and then they were recalled. Then came a long spell of waiting in miserable inaction till toward sunset, when the two boats put out again, spent a little time sounding close up to the rocks where Roylance was rescued, and were again recalled. "What does that mean, sir?" said Syd, as he told all this to the lieutenant, who, as he lay helpless, eagerly listened to every word. "I don't quite see, my lad," he said. "A trick, probably, to take off your attention. But be well on your guard, for, depend upon it, they will try to surprise you to-night, and come prepared with ladders of some kind for the escalade." _ |
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